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Argyleculture Eyewear and 13th Annual Art For Life Sweepstakes

May 4th, 2012


Enter the Argyleculture Sweepstakes for a chance to win a trip to the Hamptons! Two winners will be selected to attend the exclusive 13th Annual Art For Life East Hampton Benefit at Russell Simmons’ private East Hampton estate.

Each winner will receive a weekend in the Hamptons, airfare, transportation to and from the event for them and a guest the weekend of July 27th. Last year’s event hosted over 800 guests and raised over $1.7 million to provide New York City youth with arts access, exposure and education.

It’s Easy To Qualify

Purchase all 3 Argyleculture optical releases in February, April, and June (totaling 6 frames, 12 SKU’s) OR purchase any 12 Argyleculture frames. You will receive with your order: Argyleculture 6 piece display and counter card FREE.

Product cannot be returned and any product sold must be replenished keeping the Argyleculture display stocked at all times. Argyleculture display must be on display in-store and only merchandise Argyleculture product.

Orders can be placed thru McGee Group sales reps, fax, website, or McGee Group customer service at 800-966-2020 or sales@mcgeegroup.com. Promotion code #ARC123 must be included on all orders to be entered to win.

Prize Details

  • Two winners will be selected and allowed to bring 1 guest.
  • TMG will pay for flights, hotel, transportation to the event, and a daily allowance (i.e. for food, taxi service etc.) for the weekend.
  • TMG will not be held responsible for the actions of the winner and their guest.

 

About Art For Life
The Art of Living Foundation, founded by Russell Simmons and Danny Simmons, is a not-for-profit, educational and humanitarian NGO (Non-Governmental Organization) engaged in stress-management and service initiatives. The organization operates globally in 151 countries.

Russell has always held a firm belief that art saves lives and Rush Philanthropic’s primary annual fund raising effort helps support many projects throughout the year dedicated to reaching out to New York City youth through the arts. The Art For Life East Hampton benefit receives a great amount of support from the entertainment and art communities.

Last year’s star-studded fund raising event honored recording superstar Mary J. Blige, President of JP Morgan Chase Foundation Kimberly B. Davis, world-renowned nutritionist and author Oz Garcia, co-founder of Jimmy Choo Tamara Mellon and actor/filmmaker Edward Norton for their career achievements and philanthropic works.

www.mcgeegroup.com | www.artforlife.org

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Wiley X Will Be Raising Thousands Of Dollars For The Breast Cancer Research Foundation Through 2012

May 2nd, 2012


For the third consecutive year, leading protective eyewear manufacturer Wiley X®, Inc. will be raising thousands of dollars for The Breast Cancer Research Foundation® (BCRF), through an ongoing fundraising program linked to sales of its popular Lacey™ sunglasses. Throughout 2012, Wiley X will donate $3 from the sale of each polarized or non-polarized Lacey model to support the efforts of this long-standing and proven charitable organization.

“We’re proud of our continuing partnership with The Breast Cancer Research Foundation® and the way consumers have stepped up to help us help this very important cause,” said Wiley X Co-Owner Myles Freeman, Jr. “It’s hard to find a family that hasn’t been effected by this disease in one way or another. For this reason, all of us in the Wiley X family are committed to assisting BCRF in its noble effort — to find a cure for breast cancer in our lifetime,” added Freeman.

Designed specifically for women, the Lacey is one of Wiley X’s best-selling models. Everyone who purchases a pair of stylish Lacey sunglasses receives more than just the most advanced vision protection on the market. They also receive the positive feeling that comes from supporting research directed towards finding a cure for the leading cause of cancer deaths among women.

Throughout the year, Wiley X’s program and the product itself will help to raise both money and awareness. The Lacey features an attractive Cotton Candy colored frame matched with either Coral Pink or Polarized Bronze lenses. The model’s continuing link to the support of breast cancer research is promoted through the company’s catalogs and sales literature, as well as through a signature BCRF Pink Ribbon cling sticker that is attached to each pair. “In addition to scientific research, one of the biggest weapons against this disease is increased awareness,” added Freeman.

Despite its distinctively feminine style, the Wiley X Lacey offers the same protection that has made Wiley X a leading provider of eyewear to U.S. military and law enforcement worldwide. In addition to protecting women’s eyes against 100% of harmful UVA/UVB rays, the Lacey has earned stringent ANSI-Z87.1-2003 High Velocity Impact rating, for occupational-grade vision protection against a variety of dangers encountered in the outdoors. In fact, Wiley X is the only premium performance sunglass brand with this impressive rating on every pair of sunglasses it makes.

The Breast Cancer Research Foundation® was founded in 1993 by Evelyn H. Lauder as an independent, not-for-profit organization dedicated to funding innovative clinical and translational research. In 2011, BCRF awarded $36.5 million to scientists across the United States, Canada, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Australia and China. Currently, more than 90 cents of every dollar donated is directed to breast cancer research and awareness programs. With exceptionally low administrative costs, BCRF continues to be one of the most efficient organizations in the country and is designated an “A+” charity by The American Institute of Philanthropy, the only cancer organization to achieve this. For more information about BCRF, visit www.bcrfcure.org.

To learn more about stylish Wiley X Lacey sunglasses for women, the continuing partnership with BCRF, or the company’s complete line of performance protective eyewear for every outdoor sport and activity — visit Wiley X, Inc. at 7800 Patterson Pass Road, Livermore, CA 94550 • Telephone: (800) 776-7842 • Or visit online at www.wileyx.com

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Home Measurement of Eye Pressure in Children May Improve Management of Glaucoma

April 27th, 2012

Measurement of pressure within the eye, or intraocular pressure (IOP), is known to fluctuate throughout the day, and wide swings in patients with glaucoma are believed to be related to the progression of the disease, which can cause permanent damage to the optic nerve and vision. The clinical assessment of IOP, however, has been restricted to office visits during daytime hours. In a new study, parents using the Icare Rebound Tonometer evaluated IOP patterns in normal children at home, establishing comparative values that may be useful for the study and treatment of children with glaucoma. The research is published in the February issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus.

“Diabetes is monitored by patients using home glucose monitors, but there has been no equivalent home technique for patients to use to measure their own eye pressures – until recently,” says lead investigator Sharon F. Freedman, MD, Professor of Ophthalmology and Pediatrics, Chief, Pediatric Division, Duke Eye Center. “We found that home measurement of IOP is not only quite possible, but provides some baseline information about the expected variability of eye pressures in the normal eyes of healthy children,” “We hope this will open the door to the use of home tonometry for selected children and adults with known glaucoma, and will be helpful in managing the disease.”

The parents of 11 children were instructed on the proper use of the Icare rebound tonometer, a device that doesn’t require anesthetic drops or specialized training, and were observed taking readings until they could reliably obtain IOPs in their children. At home, the parents measured IOP 6 times daily for two consecutive days, from 6:00 am to 11:00 pm.

Sharon Freedman, MD

The Icare tonometry was well tolerated by all subjects and caused no complaints, discomfort, or adverse effects. “We found that normal eyes of healthy children have a fluctuation in eye pressure of about five mm Hg throughout the day. The eye pressure tends to be higher in the morning and lower in the evening, and ‘what the right eye does, so does the left eye,’ in that the two normal eyes of a healthy child go up and down in unison,” explains Dr. Freedman.

Journal of AAPOS Editor-in-Chief David G. Hunter, MD, PhD, of the Children’s Hospital Boston and Harvard Medical School, notes, “Measurement of eye pressure has long been a challenge in children and has only been possible in the office. This study shows that it may be possible for people of all ages to measure eye pressure at home, which could provide important information about pressure changes on a daily basis that will advance the quality of care for glaucoma patients.”

www.dukehealth.org

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Wiley X Sponsors 21st Annual Swing For Sight Golf Classic

April 26th, 2012

Wiley X, Inc. has signed up to once again sponsor the 21st Annual Swing For Sight Golf Classic, set for June 11, 2012 at the Hermitage Country Club near Richmond, Virginia. This popular tournament is expected to field 200 golfers and raise more than $90,000 to support Prevent Blindness Mid Atlantic, a volunteer, non-profit organization dedicated to preserving sight and preventing blindness in both children and adults.

Wiley X will be providing 75 pairs of its advanced performance eyewear products, which will be featured in the event’s “Deal of the Day” program designed to increase fundraising efforts through special raffles, gifts, player benefits and prizes. Wiley X’s involvement in this program last year boosted the success of the overall tournament and raised additional funds to support the vision screening activities of Prevent Blindness Mid Atlantic.

“We are proud to support this tournament and the ongoing efforts of Prevent Blindness”, said Myles Freeman, Jr., Co-Owner of Wiley X. “For more than 25 years, our company has built its reputation on protecting people’s vision, whether it’s at play, on the job — even on the battlefield. Wiley X is the only premium performance sunglasses brand whose entire line meets the stringent ANSI Z87.1-2003 High Velocity and High Mass Impact Safety standards, providing serious protection against a wide range of dangers found in the outdoors. This is why you’ll find Wiley X eyewear on the faces of NASCAR drivers, professional fishermen, soldiers — and of course, golfers,” added Freeman.

Wiley X offers several stylish sunglass families particularly popular with athletes who call the “Back 9” home. Wiley X’s state of the art, Rx-ready frames and lenses do more than protect the wearer against flying dust, low-hanging limbs or even rocks kicked up by a golf cart. They also provide the eye comfort and sharp vision that can help competitive golfers read greens better and shave a few strokes off their score. And with their stylish good looks and comfort, there’s no need to take them off when kicking back around the clubhouse with friends and fellow competitors.

To learn more about the upcoming Swing for Sight Golf Classic or the ongoing activities of Prevent Blindness Mid Atlantic, visit www.TheEyeSite.org.

For more information about Wiley X’s complete line of premium performance sunwear for fashion and virtually any outdoor activity — visit Wiley X, Inc. at 7800 Patterson Pass Road, Livermore, CA 94550 • Telephone: (800) 776-7842

www.wileyx.com

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ClearVision and Vision Expo East: Remarkable New Frames, Fabulous Show Specials and Marc Ecko Live In Booth 1017

March 15th, 2012

Visit ClearVision Optical at Vision Expo East, booth #1017 and witness its most fashion-forward, on trend frame collection ever. ClearVision will present its acclaimed collections in conjunction with shop-worthy show specials and an exclusive in-booth event with Marc Ecko.

Marc Ecko

ClearVision’s latest optical and sun collections offer designs that meet every customer need. View the expanded Marc Ecko Cut & Sew Eyewear collection, contemporary-with-a-vintage-vibe styles defined with “geek chic” embellishments and intricate, up-to-the-minute textures, patterns and materials. Meet Marc Ecko on Friday, March 23rd from 1pm to 3pm. Marc will be signing copies of his 20/20 magazine feature article! Visit the booth and receive a limited edition cleaning cloth set, while quantities last!

Also on display will be a fashion-forward array of BCBGMAXAZRIA frames featuring bold colors and on trend patterns and accents as well as exciting new offerings from Ellen Tracy, IZOD, Cole Haan and more.

In addition, ClearVision will be featuring some of the hottest show specials on the floor!

Highlights include:

  • New Customer Special: $100 Gift Card and up to 50% off * initial order. Become a ClearVision Optical customer at Vision Expo East and take up to 50% off your first order PLUS get a $100 gift card! Place an order at the show and receive a $100 gift card on the spot.

  • Purchase 36 pieces (net) and receive a 2012 Eco Tote filled with a ClearVision Shirt and Cole Haan credit card case.

  • Purchase 60 pieces (net) and receive a BCBGMAXAZRIA Watch.

  • Purchase 100 pieces (net) and receive a BCBGMAXAZRIA Python Tote.

  • *Showstopper* Purchase 150 pieces (net) and receive a Cole Haan Leather Duffle.

*ClearVision reserves the right to substitute gifts of equal or greater value.

To schedule a Vision Expo East appointment, call 1-800-645-3733 or visit www.cvoptical.com

 

About ClearVision
Founded in 1949, ClearVision Optical is an award-winning leader in the optical industry, designing and distributing eyewear and sunwear for top brands, such as BCBGMAXAZRIA, Cole Haan, Ellen Tracy, IZOD, Marc Ecko Cut & Sew Eyewear, Ocean Pacific, Jessica McClintock and Fisher-Price®. ClearVision’s house brands include ClearVision Collection, Junction City and Digit. A privately held company, ClearVision is headquartered in Hauppauge, New York and has more than 250 associates throughout the U.S. ClearVision’s collections are distributed throughout North America and 20 countries around the globe.

www.cvoptical.com | www.visionexpoeast.com

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Gene Therapy Research Team From University of Pennsylvania Cures Retinitis Pigmentosa in Dogs

March 9th, 2012

Members of a University of Pennsylvania research team have shown that they can prevent, or even reverse, a blinding retinal disease, X-linked Retinitis Pigmentosa, or XLRP, in dogs.

The disease in humans and dogs is caused by defects in the RPGR gene and results in early, severe and progressive vision loss. It is one of the most common inherited forms of retinal degeneration in man.

William Beltran

“Every single abnormal feature that defines the disease in the dogs was corrected following treatment,” said lead author William Beltran, assistant professor of ophthalmology at Penn’s School of Veterinary Medicine.”

“We were thrilled,” said senior author Gustavo Aguirre, professor of medical genetics and ophthalmology at Penn Vet. “The treated cells were completely normal, and this effect resulted from introducing the normal version of the human gene into the diseased photoreceptor cells.”

The similarities between humans and dogs, in terms of both eye anatomy, physiology, disease characteristics and positive response to this gene therapy, raise hope for a clear path to human therapies.

Gustavo Aguirre

Beltran and Aguirre collaborated with Artur Cideciyan and Samuel Jacobson at the Scheie Eye Institute, part of the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine. This achievement results from more than 10 years of close collaboration between the scientists at Penn’s veterinary and medical Schools and the University of Florida.

In addition to others at Penn Vet, Scheie and Florida, researchers at the universities of Michigan and Massachusetts and the National Eye Institute at the National Institutes of Health contributed to the research.

The study will be published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The gene therapy approach used takes advantage of a viral vector — a genetically modified virus that doesn’t cause disease and is unable to divide — to deliver the therapeutic RPGR gene specifically to diseased rods and cones. In the absence of treatment, these cells malfunction and progressively die.

The research team has previously successfully applied a similar approach to two other heritable vision disorders that occur in both humans and dogs: Leber congenital amaurosis and achromatopsia. The present study was more challenging, as it was necessary to target both main classes of photoreceptor cells.

While the exact disease mechanism of the RPGR form of XLRP is still unknown, the researchers were able to successfully treat dogs with two different RPGR mutations. The mutations disrupt photoreceptors in different ways, but both ultimately cause them to become useless for vision. While this form of blindness is rare in dogs, it is common in humans. Patients with XLRP usually begin to lose night vision as children and become almost totally blind by middle age.

Multifocal patches of rhodopsin mislocalization (in green) in the retina of a female dog that is a carrier of a mutation in the RPGR gene.

This is the first proof that this condition is treatable in an animal model; a single subretinal injection administered to the diseased dogs led to functional and structural recovery. The dogs’ recovery was assessed using a variety of methods that are used clinically in patients, such as electroretinography and optical coherence tomography.

The researchers feel the results are promising and relevant for translation to the clinic.

“We are intervening to treat both classes of photoreceptor cells, rods and cones, and that has never been done before in a large animal model,” Beltran said. “And not only can we prevent the disease onset but also restore the remaining photoreceptor cells to normal once the disease is ongoing.”

While the ability to repair both rods and cones was itself a first, the research team went further, showing that its treatment also repaired the photoreceptor connections to other retinal neurons that eventually send visual signals to the brain, another first.

“This not only provides hope for reversing XLRP but potentially for any form of photoreceptor degeneration,” Aguirre said. “Altered inner retinal wiring is a common feature for these diseases that has been considered irreversible.”

“The study required a combination of genetic tools and surgical technique to make sure the therapy targeted only the diseased cells. The viral vector had to be injected in the sub-retinal space so as to be in close proximity to the photoreceptors. Likewise, you need to ultimately deliver the therapy to the right location of the retina,” Aguirre said.

“In the human disease, careful characterization of the areas of the retina that need to be treated is going to be critical for therapy to succeed in the clinic,” Cideciyan said.

The genetic aspect of the viral vector used in this study involved a double safeguard. The first safety feature was to use a viral vector that is known to predominantly target both rods and cones but not other cells. The second safeguard involved attaching the healthy RPGR gene to a “promoter,” a piece of genetic code that would “switch on” the gene only if the virus penetrated the correct cell.

Selecting the right promoter was critical; the lead researchers at the University of Florida, William W. Hauswirth and Alfred S. Lewin, had to find one that that would be turned on exclusively in rods and cones. This way, even if the virus made its way to a non-photoreceptor cell, that cell would not start activating the RPGR gene.

That both the promoter and the RPGR gene it activates are taken from humans is a strong sign that the treatment may be translatable to patients.

“While there is still much work to do to assess long-term efficiency and safety with this approach, there is hope that this vector and knowledge could be used in a few years to treat the many patients losing vision from XLRP,” Jacobson said.

In addition to Beltran, Aguirre, Cideciyan, Jacobson and Hauswirth, the research was conducted by Sem Genini and Simone Iwabe of Penn Vet; Alejandro J. Román, Malgorzata Swider, Alexander Sumaroka and Tomas S. Alemán of Scheie; Alfred S. Lewin, Diego S. Fajardo, Vince A. Chiodo, Wen-Tao Deng and Sanford L. Boye of Florida; Hemant Khanna of Michigan and Massachusetts; and Anand Swaroop of Michigan and the National Eye Institute.

The research was supported by the National Institutes of Health, the Foundation Fighting Blindness, a Fight for Sight Nowak family grant, the Midwest Eye Banks and Transplantation Center, the Macula Vision Research Foundation, the Van Sloun Fund for Canine Genetic Research, Hope for Vision, and Research to Prevent Blindness.

www.upenn.edu

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Court Affirms VSP’s Right To Refuse To Do Business With Aspex Eyewear

March 6th, 2012

VSP Global announced that on March 1, 2012, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed the prior ruling of the California Federal Court which dismissed Aspex Eyewear’s lawsuit against VSP Vision Care. With the case now dismissed, this ruling reaffirms the right of VSP to refuse to conduct business with companies who sue them, and in this case, Aspex Eyewear.

Specifically, the Ninth Circuit Court affirmed the December 2010 ruling of the California Federal Court that dismissed Aspex’s last surviving claim against VSP after Aspex conceded the dismissal of all of its earlier anti-trust and unfair competition claims that VSP successfully challenged as baseless.

The Ninth Circuit Court’s decision is the third recent favorable court decision for VSP Global. In September 2011, the Massachusetts Federal Court declared the last remaining patent claim that Aspex tried to assert against Altair® Eyewear as invalid and unenforceable. Two months later, the Florida Federal Court likewise dismissed Aspex’s patent infringement lawsuit filed against Marchon® Eyewear.

“We are pleased with the Ninth Circuit Court’s ruling,” said Thomas A. Fessler, Chief Legal Officer and General Counsel for VSP Global. He further commented, “This court’s determination marks yet another favorable court decision against the multiple unsuccessful lawsuits Aspex Eyewear has brought against VSP and its affiliated companies.”

About VSP Global
VSP Global(SM) offers world-class products and services to eyecare professionals, employers, and more than 55 million members through a group of leading companies providing comprehensive eyecare coverage, access to cutting-edge frame styles and brands, design of custom interiors and merchandising systems, innovative e-commerce and practice management solutions, and technologically advanced lab services. With the strength and experience of these companies behind it, VSP Global stands apart and delivers benefits, services, products and solutions that are unparalleled in the world-wide optical industry.


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University of Florida Researchers Develop Gene Therapy That Could Correct Blindness

March 6th, 2012

A new gene therapy method developed by University of Florida researchers has the potential to treat a common form of blindness that strikes both youngsters and adults. The technique works by replacing a malfunctioning gene in the eye with a normal working copy that supplies a protein necessary for light-sensitive cells in the eye to function. The findings are published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences online.

Several complex and costly steps remain before the gene therapy technique can be used in humans, but once at that stage, it has great potential to change lives.

“Imagine that you can’t see or can just barely see, and that could be changed to function at some levels so that you could read, navigate, maybe even drive — it would change your life considerably,” said study co-author William W. Hauswirth, Ph.D., the Rybaczki-Bullard professor of ophthalmology in the UF College of Medicine and a professor and eminent scholar in department of molecular genetics and microbiology and the UF Genetics Institute. “Providing the gene that’s missing is one of the ultimate ways of treating disease and restoring significant visual function.”

William W. Hauswirth, Ph.D. and Alfred S. Lewin, Ph.D.

The researchers tackled a condition called X-linked retinitis pigmentosa, a genetic defect that is passed from mothers to sons. Girls carry the trait, but do not have the kind of vision loss seen among boys. About 100,000 people in the U.S. have a form of retinitis pigmentosa, which is characterized by initial loss of peripheral vision and night vision, which eventually progresses to tunnel vision, then blindness. In some cases, loss of sight coincides with the appearance of dark-colored areas on the usually orange-colored retina.

The UF researchers previously had success pioneering the use of gene therapy in clinical trials to reverse a form of blindness known as Leber’s congenital amaurosis. About 5 percent of people who have retinitis pigmentosa have this form, which affects the eye’s inner lining.

“That was a great advance, which showed that gene therapy is safe and lasts for years in humans, but this new study has the potential for a bigger impact, because it is treating a form of the disease that affects many more people,” said John G. Flannery, Ph.D., a professor of neurobiology at the University of California, Berkeley who is an expert in the design of viruses for delivering replacement genes. Flannery was not involved in the current study.

The X-linked form of retinitis pigmentosa addressed in the new study is the most common, and is caused by degeneration of light-sensitive cells in the eyes known as photoreceptor cells. It starts early in life, so though affected children are often born seeing, they gradually lose their vision.

“These children often go blind in the second decade of life, which is a very crucial period,” said co-author Alfred S. Lewin, Ph.D., a professor in the UF College of Medicine department of molecular genetics and microbiology and a member of the UF Genetics Institute. “This is a compelling reason to try to develop a therapy, because this disease hinders people’s ability to fully experience their world.”

Both Lewin and Hauswirth are members of UF’s Powell Gene Therapy Center.

The UF researchers and colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania performed the technically challenging task of cloning a working copy of the affected gene into a virus that served as a delivery vehicle to transport it to the appropriate part of the eye. They also cloned a genetic “switch” that would turn on the gene once it was in place, so it could start producing a protein needed for the damaged eye cells to function.

After laboratory tests proved successful, the researchers expanded their NIH-funded studies and were able to cure animals in which X-linked retinitis pigmentosa occurs naturally. The injected genes made their way only to the spot where they were needed, and not to any other places in the body. The study gave a good approximation of how the gene therapy might work in humans.

“The results are encouraging and the rescue of the damaged photoreceptor cells is quite convincing,” said Flannery, who is on the scientific advisory board of the Foundation Fighting Blindness, which provided some funding for the study. “Since this type of study is often the step before applying a treatment to human patients, showing that it works is critical.”

The researchers plan to repeat their studies on a larger scale over a longer term, and make a version of the virus that proves to be safe in humans. Once that is achieved, a pharmaceutical grade of the virus would have to be produced and tested before moving into clinical trials in humans. The researchers will be able to use much of the technology they have already developed and used successfully to restore vision.

University of Florida

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The Eyevolution of Eyeglasses Through The Ages

March 2nd, 2012

Infographic of the Evolution of Eyeglasses:

awesomeinfographics.com

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The Eyes Are The Window Into The Soul—Or At Least The Mind

March 2nd, 2012

The eyes are the window into the soul – or at least the mind, according to a new paper published in Perspectives on Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. Measuring the diameter of the pupil, the part of the eye that changes size to let in more light, can show what a person is paying attention to. Pupillometry, as it’s called, has been used in social psychology, clinical psychology, humans, animals, children, infants – and it should be used even more, the authors say.

Bruno Laeng

The pupil is best known for changing size in reaction to light. In a dark room, your pupils open wide to let in more light; as soon as you step outside into the sunlight, the pupils shrink to pinpricks. This keeps the retina at the back of the eye from being overwhelmed by bright light. Something similar happens in response to psychological stimuli, says Bruno Laeng of the University of Oslo, who cowrote the paper with Sylvain Sirois of Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières and Gustaf Gredebäck of Uppsala University in Sweden. When someone sees something they want to pay closer attention to, the pupil enlarges. It’s not clear why this happens, Laeng says. “One idea is that, by essentially enlarging the field of the visual input, it’s beneficial to visual exploration,” he says.

Sylvain Sirois

However it works, psychological scientists can use the fact that people’s pupils widen when they see something they’re interested in.

Laeng has used pupil size to study people who had damage to the hippocampus, which usually causes very severe amnesia. Normally, if you show one of these patients a series of pictures, then take a short break, then show them another series of pictures, they don’t know which ones they’ve seen before and which ones are new. But Laeng measured patients’ pupils while they did this test and found that the patients did actually respond differently to the pictures they had seen before. “In a way, this is good news, because it shows that some of the brains of these patients, unknown to themselves, is actually capable of making the distinction,” he says.

Gustaf Gredebäck

Pupil measurement might also be useful for studying babies. Tiny infants can’t tell you what they’re paying attention to. “Developmental psychologists have used all kinds of methods to get this information without using language,” Laeng says. Seeing what babies are interested in can give clues to what they’re able to recognize – different shapes or sounds, for example. A researcher might show a child two images side by side and see which one they look at for longer. Measuring the size of a baby’s pupils could do the same without needing a comparison.

The technology already exists for measuring pupils – many modern psychology studies use eye-tracking technology, for example, to see what a subject is looking at, and Laeng and his coauthors hope to convince other psychological scientists to use this method.


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